It's now or never

A LAST-ditch bid to save a home for the elderly from closure will be staged by relatives of its residents before a crunch council meeting to decide its fate on Monday night.

The threat to Wilton House in west Reading was highlighted last month by one of the residents - frail, wheelchair-bound 87-year-old Olive Urquhart-Jones (pictured above) in a protest at the Civic Centre.

Now senior councillors at Reading Borough Council must decide whether to listen to Olive or agree with the recommendation to approve the closure of Wilton House at the cabinet meeting.

But a crowd of protesters who have vowed to fight the closure to the bitter end will greet them outside the Civic Offices.

Councillor Kay Everett, one of the leading campaigners, said: "I will be with relatives and other supporters outside the council offices from 5pm lobbying councillors as they go in and then going into the meeting and asking questions."

The report going to the cabinet advises councillors to close the home in Parkside Road within six months.

But opponents are concerned that A LAST-ditch bid to save a home for the elderly from closure will be staged by relatives of its residents before a crunch council meeting to decide its fate on Monday night.

The threat to Wilton House in west Reading was highlighted last month by one of the residents - frail, wheelchair-bound 87-year-old Olive Urquhart-Jones (pictured) in a protest at the Civic Centre.

Now senior councillors at Reading Borough Council must decide whether to listen to Olive or agree with the recommendation to approve the closure of Wilton House at the cabinet meeting.

But a crowd of protesters who have vowed to fight the closure to the bitter end will greet them outside the Civic Offices.

Councillor Kay Everett, one of the leading campaigners, said: "I will be with relatives and other supporters outside the council offices from 5pm lobbying councillors as they go in and then going into the meeting and asking questions."

The report going to the cabinet advises councillors to close the home in Parkside Road within six months.

But opponents are concerned that the needs of the 31 elderly residents have not been assessed and that there is nowhere for them to go.

Cllr Everett said she will be calling for an extension to the life of Wilton House if councillors do vote to close it.

Cllr Everett said: "I'm shocked at the report that is going to the cabinet meeting on Monday and feel that not enough consultation has taken place.

"The residents and families should be given more time to investigate possible relocation to other residential homes, and I feel that a new assessment of every resident should take place before any moves are made from the home.

"I would urge Reading Borough Council not to close Wilton House within the six months but to give it an extended six months for this to be implemented."

If cabinet members approve the closure, they will also give a commitment to find alternative accommodation in Reading for existing residents who wish to stay in the borough and to meet

residents' choice of home "as far as is practicable".

However, the report goes on to say there are 31 residents currently in Wilton House but only nine vacancies in other council residential care homes.

Conservative Councillor Richard Willis, who is backing the residents, said: "There has been no assessment done into what sort of care residents need, there doesn't appear to be anywhere for them to go and they intend to close Wilton House by October."

He added: "This is a central Government-driven policy and target which is to get people out of residential care homes and keep them in their own homes with care in the community.

"The principle of that I support, but you have to take into account people's needs and you can't centrally drive a target by closing homes and caring for people in the community when there is not that care available in the community."

Social services bosses at the council argue that demand for care homes is declining and more elderly people want to continue to live in their own homes with support.

They say Wilton House was chosen for closure because it does not meet new National Care Standards, which come into force in 2007.

The council has tried to reassure relatives that the proposed timescale of closure is not fixed and will be extended if necessary to enable residents to remain in Reading where requested.